Paid for by Holden for Kannapolis

I have also been a volunteer for many other groups and organizations throughout the area. I may only be 29, but I have used my adult years to learn, grow, and contribute how I can!

Why Holden?

I believe that I am well suited to serve you as a member of our City Council. My experience, unique background, and dedication to the task of bettering our city help me stand apart from all the other current council members. If elected, I will be the youngest member on the city council, bringing in better representation of our residents and bringing in my extended perspective to the issues and potential resolutions.

I have worked for years to gain a deeper understanding of the issues impacting our community. With both my professional and volunteer work, I have learned how to tackle the issues and bring common sense solutions to the table. With me as your City Councilman, you get someone who is dedicated, one who listens and responds, who listens to city personnel about issues they see day-to-day, and one who is approachable when you have an issue. I look forward to earn your vote and am always happy to discuss the issues in-depth with you.

Taxes

Let's be honest, no one likes paying taxes but they are critical to our city functioning. We must always ensure our taxes are being spent effectively and for the betterment of the residents of Kannapolis. Our tax rate should be consistently evaluated to ensure that we are not taxing too much and that our communities are feeling that their tax dollars are being put to good use and spent efficiently.

Our Streets

It is past time for our roadways to be properly maintained by the city. Now, many roads in our city are maintained by the state. Regardless, we should be in constant contact with the state about the maintenance of roadways in our city, we should be evaluating our own streets to ensure they are properly maintained, and that they're safe for pedestrians and drivers. That means crosswalks, stop lights, more parking, and sidewalks when needed.

I am also a huge supporter of cleaning up our streets. If you drive down any mildly traveled road, you will see ditches and woods littered with trash and junk. As a member of city council, I will push that we introduce more clean up programs for our streets. That we implement more policies around street litter and that we reinforce the "Adopt-a-Street" program.

Ensuring our streets are clean is much more than just visual appeal, it also is important for our wildlife, environment, and our waterways.

Mental Health

Mental health matters! As a city, we have many great opportunities to expand mental health treatment and support here in Kannapolis. I support having a local mental health facility that is able to provide support for mental illness, prevent potential harm from it, and legitimately treat mental illness with long term results. I want our city to be able to confidently say that we have the resources to our residents, veterans, and city personnel that we have the resources they need to get help and that there is no shame in seeking out help.

Public Safety

We as a city should also ensure that our police force is properly trained and equipped for the tasks that they encounter every day. This means extensive training, effective recruitment, and relationship building between our officers and communities. I support increased awareness of mental health issues in our police force. Those experiencing mental health issues should not be treated like criminals. I support the city having mental health evaluators readily available for these encounters.

I also believe we should continue to support our fire departments. Kannapolis has recently built several new, state of the art facilities to ensure our residents have quick access to a fire station should the need arise and implemented systems so fire fighters know how many live in your home and if you have pets. I believe we should continue to operate in excellence and maintain our great ISO rating. I also believe we should encourage our recruitment and retention efforts, ensure that both our fire fighters are properly trained and equipped, and that they are involved in the communities they serve.

Strenthening Our City Programs

The City of Kannapolis applies for and receives grants for many different things. Some programs offer support to lower income residents in need of major home repairs and some are offered for expanding our green energy output and services.

The City should continue to pursue these grants, find more opportunities, and see how they can put more into these programs for our residents.

Housing

Like many, I have seen first hand the difficult time many residents are having when it comes to housing. Rent is high, home prices have skyrocketed, and large companies have continued to buy up properties while individual buyers are being shut out. The solution is not an easy one but I believe we should be seriously reviewing the data of this issue and how to best address housing for our residents, especially those in lower incomes.

I wanted to say a special thank you for visiting my website. There are so many reasons I want to serve you on the city council and I hope I was able to capture part of that here. I am always available to chat about the issues and am so eager to hear about what matters most to you here in Kannapolis. I plan to be at as many events and out in the public any time I get a chance.

Thanks as always

Holden

Paid for by Holden for Kannapolis